Dawning
by Marie19930
Summary: A story about how Bumi and Honora became a couple starting from their teenage years into adulthood and how they both bonded over time.
1. Chapter 1

The Fire Lord was relieved when Aang and his family showed up. It was been a while since they had all been together, but Zuko had wrote to Aang about worrying about Honora. Aang wrote back when he had the time and mentioned he would be there as soon as his duties would permit to spend a good week or two. Both of their oldest children were now in their early teens. It seemed like it wasn't that long ago that they had still been in diapers. Kya was the eldest out of everyone. She was two years older than Bumi and Kya who were six months apart. Tenzin had come a few years later. They had all grown up together and it was like one big family. If anything were to happen to Aang and Katara, Zuko had agreed to be the Godfather of all three children and it was the same with Aang.

Kya was now fifteen and she was the typical teenager. She wanted privacy half the time and had started to notice the opposite sex. She was still a kid at heart though just like her father and shared the same warm heartedness as him too. Katara was very proud to have another water bender in the family and had begun to teach Kya everything she knew with the help of Aang. Bumi in a way resembled Sokka with his attempts at jokes, pranks, and the luck of being a non-bender. He was close to Kya though because they shared both of their wild adventures as children. Bumi wasn't a bad kid at all; he just had his own way of doing things. Aang and Katara hardly questioned him as long as he seemed happy. Tenzin was more down to Earth than all three children and his father was basically his idol. He worshipped the ground Aang walked on because they were both the only known air benders left. He hardly caused trouble and kept out of Kya and Bumi's trouble making. Even though he was the youngest, he was the most mature. He even acted wise beyond his years. The three never failed to leave Aang and Katara exhausted by the end of the day but they still loved them more than anything in the world.

Then there was Zuko's daughter, Honora. She had the air of royalty but wasn't as up tight as her passed ancestors had been. Zuko and Mai had taught her it was alright to be her own person other than what others expected. Honora knew when to be the Princess of the Fire Nation and when to be a child. She was very beautiful and was Zuko's only child. It caused much criticism in the Nation because Mai had not bared a son yet, but she had complications with having more children. There was a big fuss about it, but Zuko brushed it off as something that was meant to be. The gods had their ways. He was proud of his daughter and it wouldn't have made a difference either way. Honora in a way resembled Azula and his mother, but someone could tell from a distance she was Zuko and Mai's child. They had also agreed not to exclude Honora out of anything going on with the Fire Nation. They thought it was the right thing to tell her everything and never hide something from her unless it had to be. She was even asked her opinion on issues going on and sometimes Zuko would be inspired by what she would say. Honora was never pressured to be involved; her parents had her choose unless it was a matter that included everyone or just her. Honora had her share of trouble but over all she knew right from wrong.

Zuko heard doors open and turned around to see his friends come in. He smiled but his eyes looked like there was something troubled him deep down. Aang was the first to see it.

"Go on and play," Katara told her children. Bumi and Kya ran off to Honora's room and Tenzin calmly walked after them.

"So….Kiwi is gone?" Aang said asking about Honora's cat-like pet. Zuko nodded.

"She was kind of old," Zuko added. "We got her for Honora when she was around five."

Katara was confused. They were asked to come to the Fire Nation because Honora's pet died, but Kiwi was more than a pet for her. They were best friends and Aang understood since he had Appa.

"How is Honora doing? Is she ok?" Katara asked as her maternal instincts kicked in. Zuko shook his head.

"She hasn't stopped crying," Zuko said.

"There must be something we can do," Aang said. "We could get her another pet, but it won't be the same and I don't want to make her feel like we are replacing…Kiwi."

Zuko looked over at the wall where a recent family painting was hung. Zuko stood proudly with his wife behind a wooden chair where Honora was sitting with Kiwi curled contently in her lap. She had insisted that Kiwi was also part of their family and Mai and Zuko were alright with that.

Zuko sighed. "Mai and I even cried when she passed, but Honora is taking it much harder."

Aang was deep in thought. He remembered Kiwi. She was affectionate but she had a short temper just like the family she belonged to. It was funny in a way. Kiwi knew she was royalty too and made sure no one forgot it when she jumped in Aang's lap and demanded attention. Her black fur and gold eyes blended right in with the family. She had so much fur, Aang mistaken her as a black pillow before when she was curled up asleep. He soon found out pillows didn't growl….or had claws. Katara never let him go about it.

0000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000 000000000000000000000000

Kya and Bumi were the first to reach Honora's room. Bumi basically nearly kicked the door down out of excitement.

"Honora, do you want to go swimming with us?" Kya asked excitedly when the door opened. Honora shook her head. She was sitting at the edge of her bed with a small painting in her lap. She looked like she had been crying. They all had forgotten the reason they were here.

"Come on Honora, it'll be fun!" Bumi added as he tried keeping his tone cheery.

"No, go without me. I'll be ok here," Honora said as she began wiping tears away. Her long hair was pulled back and today she was wearing a simple black dress.

"But Honora," Kya tried to explain to her friend calmly but Honora lost her tempter. She stood from her seat.

"I SAID! GO! AWAY!" Honora lashed out releasing fire blast with each word. Kya and Bumi stepped away and ducked just in time, but Tenzin nearly walked into it when he finally appeared at the door. He heard her yell from in the hallway. Honora gave Tenzin an apologetic look, but still glared at the other two.

Tenzin often gave Honora advice on things and it seemed like it would have been better advice than if she would have asked an adult. Honora in a strange way found it attracting, but he was too young for her. It was a thought that would never happen anyway. He had taught her how to meditate and how to act in the spirit world since Kya and Bumi were not as interested and it made him feel left out. Tenzin liked her open mindedness and taught her many things that he had learned from his father. Zuko was impressed since his own daughter could give him advice on how to calm down after a tough meeting or when his day as Fire Lord went wrong in every way. Honora had even impressed Aang when he heard she spoke to a wise dragon spirit but he didn't doubt it since dragons had a lot to do with the royal family in the past. Since Aang treated Honora like his own, he was proud that someone else was willing to learn about the monk's culture. Kya and Bumi didn't take interest to it yet, so it was to some relief that someone else so young did. He thought Honora was a very bright girl and would live up to her name.

"Come on, she'll probably catch up later," Tenzin stated as he tried to hide the fact that he almost got his face burned off. Kya walked away disappointed with Tenzin but Bumi remained behind.

"I'm not gonna push you to come with us, but I'm sorry you lost….Kiwi," Bumi said feeling awkward.

Honora kept wiping her tears. "She was one of my best friends," she sobbed. "I'll never have another connection like that with anyone else."

"We are here if you need us though," Bumi added. "If you want to talk, you know where we are."

Kya started sobbing again as she held her painting of Kiwi. Bumi felt kind of bad just leaving her.

"Bumi…" she said. He looked at her. "Do you believe in reincarnation? Do you think…she was reborn as something better?"

Bumi was caught off guard by the question. He didn't really know what he believed other than the spirits who watched over him. "I don't see why not," he said. He then chuckled. "You've been hanging around Tenzin too much."

Honora gave him a death glare.

"Not that it's a bad thing!" Bumi added quickly to avoid getting scorched. "Just think of it that way then if it makes you feel better."

Honora finally set the painting on her bed. She sniffled. "Fine I'll go with you guys," she said. Bumi almost leaped with joy. "But it's only because I have a feeling Kiwi would want me to."

Honora packed a beach bag and then followed Bumi to the room where their parents were talking. They had apparently been waiting on Bumi but were surprised when they saw him come in with his arm wrapped around Honora's shoulder and grinning. Honora still looked sad and her eyes were still puffy but she still gave a small smile to the familiar faces. Tenzin looked relieved and Kya looked like she was holding back from running and squeezing her friend in a tight hug.

"You finally got her to come out," Mai said when she saw them. Honora broke away from Bumi and gave both her parents a hug. She was still sensitive and cried at every little thing, but they were both glad she had something to distract her for a while.

"Honora, you have fun. You hear me?" Zuko said when he released her. Honora nodded.

"We'll be back for dinner," Katara added. Zuko and Mai still had important meetings and things to take care of. Katara took Honora's bag so she could carry it. "If she causes any trouble we'll blame Bumi." Bumi scowled but Katara gave Honora a reassuring wink.

They left shortly after to get on Appa. Honora wasn't a fan of heights, but when she flew on Appa it didn't seem all too bad. Aang had to help her climb up because of a childhood injury that left arthritis in her right knee. Katara had tried healing it entirely but it didn't work for some reason, so all she could do was try to relieve the pain and stiffness sometimes. The discomfort didn't seem to bother Honora at all, but when she complained her parents knew she was hurting. Katara recommended a few herbal salves, hot bathes, and exercise.

"The water should help with that," Aang said as he let go of Honora's hand and went to take Appa's reigns. Honora took her usual seat next to Kya but Bumi showed up immediately close to them. Tenzin was sitting next to his father, but he turned around for a second to give Honora a small smile. It made Honora feel more comfortable.

"How bad is it?" Bumi asked when they started flying. Honora started to say something, but was interrupted. "You haven't been moving a lot the past few days, so it must be hurting."

"Since when are you a doctor?" Kya snapped. Then she turned to Honora. "What happened anyways?"

"When I was little, I lost my footing getting out of one of the royal carriages and when I fell, my knee hit one of the metal parts," Honora explained as she rubbed her knee. "I was too small to remember it, but my parents thought I just bruised it until it starting hurting when I got older."

"I remember Kiwi lying on your knee," Bumi blurted out and was elbowed really hard in the ribs by Kya. Honora was going to respond but lost her words. "Oww! Son of a -!"

"I heard that!" Katara yelled before Bumi could finish his sentence.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: This chapter takes place one year from the first one.**

Honora had definitely grown during the past year. Her dark hair now almost reached her waist and her natural curves started to fill out anything she wore. Bumi felt like the only who noticed. It was like it happened over night. They had seen each other often because rebels were starting to go crazy again and Fire Lord Zuko was nearly assassinated. He was now in a meeting with Aang. Honora decided not to attend since the subject was likely to upset her and make her angry that anyone would want to kill her father. She knew attending meetings was once a privilege but her parents didn't push her to go if she didn't feel the need to. Her help was always welcomed though. Honora was pacing back and forth in one of the main rooms in the palace reserved as a living space for the royal family. The fire place burned brightly but didn't seem to bring Honora any warmth. The thought of a crazy rebel killing someone she loved very much chilled her to the bone. She was even shivering.

Tenzin entered the room and the sound of the door creaking open made her jump. "Are you scared too?" he asked. Honora nodded when she stopped pacing to look at him. Tenzin had grown some too. He recently got tattoos like his father's and he had become amazing at air bending. Honora somewhat envied him since she wanted a tattoo of a dragon but didn't mention it to her parents yet. Aang knew she had a great connection with them, which was a very good thing. Honora wanted him to do the dragon tattoo for her, but she didn't want to do anything behind her parents' back. Aang was the only one she trusted to do it, even though he wasn't an artist. She could get someone else to do a really good outline and then Aang could do the rest. It was something that was far off though.

"It's seems like they've been talking forever now," Honora finally added. She took a seat on one of the fancy sofas. Her body sank in comfortably but it still didn't sooth her nerves. Tenzin sat in the chair opposite of her. He seemed just as nervous since he was also very close to his father.

"Honora?" Bumi's voice asked when he entered the room. Honora immediately got up and crossed the room to hug him. Bumi kind of blushed when he felt "two bumps" that weren't there before when she had hugged him in the past. Tenzin saw Bumi's reaction and smirked. Bumi hugged her back tightly. "Kya is in the meeting with them, I'm sure if they don't tell us what's going on afterwards then she will," he added. Honora shivered and he couldn't help but to pull her closer. Honora hadn't lost a family member since her Uncle died when she was eight years old and she wasn't intending to go through it all again.

"People have tried to assassinate the Fire Lord since dad can remember," Tenzin said. "This isn't the first time but it was the closest to succeeding."

"I know," Bumi said grimly as he let go of Honora. He pulled off his heavy coat and draped it over her shoulders. It seemed to cover her entire small framed body. "Mom told us to watch over Honora."

Honora felt grateful for her Godparents. She pulled Bumi's coat tighter around her and she picked up the familiar smell or burning fire wood. The scent soothed her a little bit, but not enough. Her stomach growled embarrassingly loud. She hadn't eaten anything in a day or two since the incident because she couldn't keep anything down. Honora vomited frequently when she heard the news about her father. If she kept going that way she was going to become sicker. The thought of food even made her nauseated. The only thing that kept her energy up was a few cups of tea if she was lucky enough to digest liquids. Honora started sweating even though she felt cold. She started feeling dizzy, so she sat down in the nearest seat. Bumi and Tenzin joined her. Bumi tried putting an arm around her shoulders, but her reflex was to shrug it off. She was tense all over.

The door to the room finally opened and both Tenzin and Bumi stood up.

"Dad, is it over?" Tenzin asked. Honora looked and the Avatar was standing in the doorway looking as exhausted as everyone else. Aang sighed wearily.

"I need to speak with Bumi," he said. Bumi and Tenzin looked at each other. "It won't take long, but we need to hurry." Bumi gave one last glance at Honora and then walked towards his father. Aang put his arm around his son as he walked out and shut the door.

"What do you think it is?" Honora asked.

"I'm not sure," Tenzin answered. "I have a bad feeling though."

"I do too," Honora said as she shifted her body to a more comfortable position. "If your dad knows what he's doing then we will be ok. He would never put any of us in harm's way if he knew we couldn't handle it." The door opened again and this time Katara, Kya, Mai, and Zuko entered the room. Honora stood and rushed to her parents to give them a much needed hug.

"Tenzin," Katara said," would you be alright with staying her with Honora?

"Yes, but why?" Tenzin asked.

"Bumi is going with your father to help find and arrest who tried to murder Zuko," Katara explained. "We received an anonymous tip and we needed help. So you and Kya are going to stay here with Mai and Honora while we go. The less people we have in danger, the better." Honora knew Bumi was a decent swordsman and he was on his way to becoming a master just like his Uncle Sokka. Bumi was also proficient in kicking anyone's ass which was a helpful skill.

"Ok, I'll stay here then," Tenzin agreed anxiously.

"I know you're worried, but it's the best plan we could come up with and we can't allow this person to get away with attempted murder," Katara said as she put both hands on her son's shoulders. Bumi came back in the room with seriousness all over his face. Honora's heart started beating rapidly because she knew what that look meant.

"Dad's waiting," Bumi said before turning to leave.

"Wait!" Honora called out as she ran up to him. He was too lost in thought so she followed him into the hallway where they were alone. Bumi finally stopped to allow her to catch up with him. "You forgot this," Honora said as pulled off the jacket he had wrapped around her earlier.

"Thanks, Honora," he said as he took it.

"Just be careful," Honora told him as she embraced him tightly again. "You'll also need this," Honora added when she pulled away. She took off her necklace with a silver dragon pendant. Its eyes were pure ruby and it symbolized protection. She put it around Bumi's neck. "Don't lose it and make sure you give it back to me."

Bumi tucked the pendant under his shirt so it wouldn't get in his way as he fought. He smiled at her. "I won't forget," he answered. "There's something I want to give you though." Honora was puzzled as to what it could be. Usually when Bumi gave someone something it was a prank. He cupped her cheek with one of his callused hands and then kissed her deeply on the lips. It left Honora shocked to the point where she couldn't speak or respond to anything else. When Bumi pulled away they were both blushing. He was waiting for her to burn all the hair off his head, but instead she stood there with her cheeks turning pink.

"Be careful, Bumi," Honora said when she could finally think again. He grinned and walked down the hallway arrogantly with a huge grin on his face. Zuko found his daughter in the hallway staring at Bumi as he walked down the hall to meet his father. The Fire Lord had a feeling he would owe Toph ten gold coins and a week's worth of Fire Flakes.


End file.
